U.S. Pat. No. 4,229,095 describes one embodiment of light valve array of the kind referred to above, as employed in electronic imaging apparatus. In this embodiment the electro-optic modulator panel comprises a plurality of spaced address and reference electrodes formed on one surface of PLZT material to form a linear array of selectively addressable light control portions. The ingress and egress polarizers, sandwiching the panel, are disposed with their directions of polarization at 90.degree. to one another, at 45.degree. to the line direction of the linear array of light control portions and at 45.degree. to the direction of the electric field that is selectively applied between adjacent address and reference electrodes. When a light control portion is not addressed by a transverse electric field, light from the ingress polarizer passes through that control portion unmodulated and is thereafter blocked by the egress polarizer. When a transverse addressing electric field is applied, the light polarization state is changed by the electro-optic element to an extent that it will pass the egress polarizer.
The above-described approach for electronic imaging has been found quite useful and has been the subject of various refinements. Thus, U.S. Pat. No. 4,371,892 describes techniques for optimizing the addressing potentials, applied across the light control portions, to obtain transmission uniformity. U.S. Pat. No. 4,569,573 and commonly assigned U.S. application Ser. No. 780,873, filed Sept. 27, 1985 by J. Mir, now U.S. Pat. No. 4,707,081, describe techniques for forming in-depth electrodes which improve the effectiveness of the addressing electric field, by directing it more precisely perpendicular to the direction of light propagation through the panel (and at 45.degree. to that light's entry direction of polarization.)